Chapter 43: Jacek's womanly sister...

Wednesday, 16th march 1892.

Yuki twisted and turned; a sense of rejuvenation spread through her body as she stirred. She stretched her limbs and buried her face in her pillow.

"You are finally awake."

Yuki sluggishly turned her face from her pillow and looked in the direction of the familiar voice. "Jacek…" she called softly and stretched her hand to him.

Jacek stood from the nearby sofa, marched to his sister and took her hand. He gently squeezed it, his eyes drooped, weighted by the burden of regret.

"What is wrong?" Yuki's voice was soft and comforting as she tried to coax her brother into telling her what bothered him.

Jacek's eyes bore a thousand apologies when he tried to meet Yuki's gaze. "I am shameful, so shameful, it causes my heart to ache," Jacek lamented, a look of contrition creased his face, etched with deep lines of sorrow.

Yuki shifted, lifted her body from the softness of the bed and sat up. She took Jacek's other hand and lowered her head to look into her brother's face. "What makes you say such a thing?"

"I lost consciousness yesterday. I lost consciousness in a moment you needed me the most!" Jacek's expression darkened when he remembered once more just how incompetent he was.

Yuki released one of Jacek's hands and pressed a bruise on his neck. He winced and looked into her face. "This is a sign of your worth in my life despite all that you may be thinking about. A person who bleeds for my sake can never be shameful in my eyes. You are not shameful, Jacek, if anything, you are only human."

"But still…" Jacek persisted, though, the weight of regret on his shoulder felt much lighter after hearing Yuki's words.

Yuki put a little distance between herself and her brother, her brows furrowed deeply. "Was it a dream…" she spoke more to herself than Jacek.

"Is something wrong?" Jacek questioned with concern.

"I am not sure…I don't know if it was reality or a dream, but someone was with me yesterday," Yuki tried futilely to recall the entirety of the presence that was with her the previous day.

Hearing Yuki's words and sensing her confusion, a small smile spread across Jacek's lips. He raised his hand and stroked Yuki's head with tender movements. "It was not a dream," he said with a mix of pride and gratitude. "Thankfully, it was not a dream."

Yuki's eyes lit up with curiosity and with an unfathomable joy weighing heavily on her heart. "It wasn't a dream? Did you see them then?" Yuki jabbered.

Jacek's smile broadened upon taking notice of Yuki's return to her old self. Except, though subtly, there was a striking change in her appearance that he overlooked as a result of his bad mood earlier. Now that he was looking more closely, Yuki looked twice if not thrice, more beautiful than her former self.

Her skin was fairer, with a healthy glow to it. Her hair was now pitch-black instead of the ebony it used to be; it looked silkier and shinier as well. And then there was her eyes, the blue looked so revitalized, it looked almost gem-like. In fact, there seemed to have been an upgrade in all her features, including parts of her body Jacek refused to mention… Is this what they called womanhood?

"Jacek!? Tell me who it is!" Yuki's curiosity was eating at her and Jacek was not helping with his absent-mindedness.

Jacek cleared his throat, gained his composure and said smugly, "Why don't you see for yourself." When he rose and Yuki did same, Jacek halted in his movements upon realizing how Yuki appeared in that moment.

"Before that, you should change out of your nightwear and apply some… a lot of your tan cream," Jacek said sternly. There was no way he was having his sister seen as she was!

Yuki frowned, but obeyed Jacek as any argument she raised would end in a useless banter. "I will shower first…"

From the bathroom, Yuki entered the dressing room to wear something. Yuki was taken aback as soon as she saw her reflection in the dressing mirror before which she had just sat. She touched her face slowly. Was something different? She was not entirely sure, but she noticed that she looked different somehow.

Having more important matters to attend to, Yuki put out of her mind the abrupt change in her features.

Yuki was quick in getting herself ready to meet whoever it was that Jacek was speaking of. Now understanding why Jacek wanted her to apply a lot of tan, she did exactly that, because even she feared the kind of trouble her appearance could attract to her.

"Jacek!" Yuki called to her brother when she finished dressing up. He entered the room as soon after she called.

Jacek rose his thumb to Yuki with an approving smile when he saw how she was dressed. The tan and old-fashioned clothes had worked some magic, although most of Yuki's charm remained despite all the disguise. "What about your eyes?"

"What about them?" Yuki narrowed her eyes as she had a clue what her crazy brother was getting at.

"You should cover it." Jacek said in a matter-of-fact manner.

Yuki did not hide her scowl when she looked at Jacek. "Get out of my face!" Yuki shoved Jacek to the side and proceeded to the door.

"Yuki, wait! I am serious about covering your eyes!" Jacek exclaimed earnestly, rushing after his sister.

"Give me a break!" Yuki fumed with evident vexation. "Jacek, this person…" Yuki's voice was calmer this time as she looked over at Jacek nervously.

"Don't be nervous. You would be surprise to know who it is," Jacek uttered with an assuring smile.

The memories from the night before were foggy and puzzling, Yuki could only recall fragments of the dream-like encounter. Nonetheless, the good feelings she had towards whoever had been with her was as real as day. She wanted to meet this person, she wanted to see them, she wanted to forever etched their image in her mind.

Yuki cluelessly followed Jacek out of their suite to another not far from their own. 'ROOM 101' was carved on the door they stood before. Jacek knocked twice and stood back. Almost immediately after Jacek knocked, a clinking sound emerged, followed by a creaking sound as the door slowly opened. As the door stood ajar, Yuki was quick to peek inside the room.

Standing behind the opened door was a bare-chested, towering figure of a man Yuki was very much acquainted with. She ogled at his godly frame as he unconsciously flexed his muscles when he brushed his hand through his wet, disheveled hair. Droplets of water tickled down from his hair as if to confirm that he was only returning from taking a shower.

"Treyton?" Yuki muttered, then looked at her brother and back at Treyton. "It was you?"

Treyton smiled faintly, closed in on Yuki and stooped to stare into her face. "Are you feeling better?" Treyton's grey eyes observed the girl with concern.

Yuki's entire face burned at the sudden confrontation. She stared back into Treyton's eyes but had no idea what words had come out of his mouth a minute ago.

Jacek cleared his throat gingerly, his eyes laced with several emotions after watching the dramatic encounter of the two.

Treyton straightened his back, then looked between the siblings and said, "come in." He stepped aside to allow the two to go through the door. Yuki entered first, then Jacek, who stopped by him and whispered, "Put on a shirt!" Treyton laughed.

"It was Treyton?" Yuki whispered as soon as Treyton excused himself.

"Yes. Though he refuses to tell me how he found us, I am just grateful he did. Does it bother you that he found out about you?" an inkling of anxiety lingered inside Jacek as he stared at Yuki, waiting for her response.

Did it bother her? She was not sure if it did. But if he truly was the hazy person in her memory…if he was truly the one who brought her relief when her pain was driving her insane, and even gave her rest. If Treyton was that person…

Just when Yuki's thoughts were oscillating towards uncertainty, Treyton's sturdy bod emerged from the dressing room; his gait as confident as always. There was a fluttering sensation in Yuki's chest while a warm glow spread through her body as she looked into the piercing eyes of the man who had redeem her from a despairing state.

To Jacek's utter shock, Treyton, upon his arrival, sat nowhere else but beside his sister. Jacek gaped as he watched him bring his nose to the nape of Yuki's neck and take an unquietly long sniff.

The shock from Treyton's unpredictable behavior rendered Jacek speechless. And then, there was Yuki, who instead of resisting or at the very least, showing disapproval or disdain, just sat there, eyes wide open with a look he could not even put to words. What was going on! Jacek could not comprehend anything.